Syrians gather around the coffin of a slain man in a village in Idlib District, Syria, Jan. 14, 2012. According to villagers the man was a farmer who was shot by state security forces on his way to work.

Financial Times Germany, January 30, 2012.

Syrians demonstrate against the rule of Bashar al Assad, Idlib District, Syria, Jan. 14, 2012. The country has been gripped by a popular uprising for more than ten months that left some 5.000 people dead.

A man reads a newspaper and watches TV in a tea house in the neighborhood Fatih in Istanbul, Turkey, Dec. 21, 2011. Despite Turkey being a model democracy for the post-revolution Arab world, it is one of the worst countries when it comes to press freedom. Currently, some 70 journalists are in jail. And recently around 30 journalist were arrested because of allged ties to militant Kurdish organizations. Turkey claims all journalists are in jail because of criminal charges and not their work as journalists.

Ethnic tensions and a controversial mullah in India, bored German soldiers in Afghanistan, a stalled revolution in Syria, Gaddhafi’s fall in Libya, elections in Egypt and much in-between: This was my 2011. Above is a slideshow with some of my favorite stories and pictures from this year.

An underage Afghan boy sleeps in an abandoned car near Patras, Greece, Oct. 11, 2009.

While borders inside Europe have almost vanished, the European Union struggles to close its external borders. Thousands of refugees, mostly from Afghanistan and African countries, try to get into Europe every day. Many pay for it with their lives. In the coming months, I will travel along Europe’s external borders to document the situation of refugees there. My aim is to create a major body of work that highlights the refugee crisis along the European Union’s external borders in a cohesive and comprehensive way. This project is funded in part by the Stiftung Kulturwerk, a German foundation that supports cultural and journalistic projects.

Afghan boys gather used munition after a training shoot of Belgian forces near Kunduz, Afghanistan, April 5, 2011. Financial hardship and a lack of security are the root causes for emigration from Afghanistan. Some Afghan boys start their journey towards Europe at ages as young as twelve.

New York Times, A6, Dec. 09, 2011.

International Herald Tribune, Sept. 19, 2011.

A woman watches over her granddaughter, Suman S.C., as she lies in labor in a Primary Health Center in Harchandpur, Uttar Pradesh, India, July 30, 2011. In a government scheme to improve maternal health, women receive 1400 Indian Rupees if they give birth in a clinic. The Primary Health Centers provide basic health care in rural India. In recent years the Indian Government has tried to improve rural health care by creating the National Rural Health Mission (NRHM) and providing it with massive funds. While the situation has improved the NRHM has also opened the door for widespread corruption. Recently, two doctors administering NRHM funds have been killed.

Newsweek, Dec. 12, 2011.

Newsweek, Dec. 12, 2011.

My essay on Egyptian election symbols appeared in the overseas edition of Newsweek. Read the story here…